As loyal donors age, industry on lookout for young blood
Overall, nearly 60 percent of blood donations come from people over 40 — and nearly 45 percent come from people older than 50, according to the AABB, an international nonprofit focused on transfusion medicine and cellular therapies.
There’s a problem with that, though. Like Standefer, many regulars are aging out of the donor pool. Increasingly, blood-industry experts say, there are too few young people lining up to replace them.
“The older generations seemed to have internalized the message that we always have to have an adequate supply of blood on the shelves,” said Dr. James AuBuchon, president and chief executive of Bloodworks Northwest in Seattle. “The younger generations just seem less wired toward that message.”...